After waking up from my short nap, I retrieved the wolf pelt from the centre of the ring of stones. Now, the only problem was, how was I supposed to wear this? Musing about it for a while as I leisurely floated around the alcove, I decided to remove the heads of the pelt, then cut the pelt in half between the front and hind legs. Despite me being able to drag the whole corpse into this alcove, it was actually a really large wolf and very heavy, and the only reason I managed was with the combination of my [Flight] reducing my own body weight and having raised my [PWR] stat after my last fight.
I then wrapped the upper half around my upper body twice and tied it at my back, and then the lower half around my lower body twice and tied it at the side of my waist. I tucked in the top half for complete protection of my torso. I looked down, satisfied with my makeshift clothes, once again marvelling at how in this world, I had really become a woman. And now, I could even wear a skirt without feeling awkward and gross!
I then decided to try a new application of my [Spatial Magic]. Yes, you guessed it, another isekai staple - the Item Bag or [Spatial Storage]. However, I wasn't quite sure how to designate a space with [Area Cast] to make this work. Perhaps, this would have to be a purely [Spatial Magic] operation.
I tried and failed for three hours straight.
ARGHHH, why is this so hard? Don't isekai protagonists get this skill from the very beginning? And it's some kind of super cheat-level, complete time-stoppage, big-as-a-football field kind of skill right? Why can't I even create one the size of a convenience store bag?
Finally, in a state of extreme annoyance, I designated the pile of meat lying on the floor and just imagined it disappearing into a sealed space.
-Conditions have been met. {Subskill: Spatial Storage} has been acquired. {Subskill: Spatial Storage} has been incorporated into
...heh?
Aaah, is that so? Could have told me earlier...sigh
As I pouted, numb and dejected, I finally heaved a sigh of relief at being able to actually use the skill. Checking out the skill description, I furrowed my brows.
{Subskill: Spatial Storage
Skill Description: Isolates the designated objects within a subspace. Automatically fails on living beings. Each instance of designation will store objects within a different subspace. Objects may be placed into or retrieved from the subspace. As it is a subspace, external physical rules are suspended. No matter the level of [Spatial Magic], the internal rules of the subspace may not be altered.
Skill Prerequisites:
Skill Stats: Current Number of Subspaces (1/3); Current Area of Each Subspace (0.85m x0.85m x0.85m) ((92%, 0%, 0%)); Area of Subspaces scales with [MAG]; Maximum Number of Subspaces scales with [Spatial Magic] level.}
Isn't this...way too broken? Doesn't this mean that if my [Spatial Magic] reaches level 10 I can have 10 subspaces? And when my [MAG] scales up I'll have pretty big subspaces? Hmm, but I guess this is meant to limit the size of subspaces in favour of having MORE subspaces, which means I can store a lot of smaller things, but not something huge.
Having figured out the balance reasons for the skill being the way it is, I finally came to realise that the balance "decision" for this world's storage magic was that I would be allowed to carry a lot of smaller objects, such as food supplies, water, monster items, and so on, but I would not be able to fit things such as a whole house or a wagon full of items. If I was not a [Vallen], and was instead a race with a lower disposition for [Spatial Magic] and a lower reliance on [MAG], I would naturally have small and few subspaces for use, basically making it simply more convenient rather than the huge boon it was for me now.
Well, having said that, it really is a matter of survival right now, but in the future when I'm out of this labyrinth, it'll probably actually only be a big convenience rather than a life-saving skill.
Having concluded my thoughts, I picked up the [Mana Core] left behind after butchering the wolf.
{Obtained from a demonised monster, this [Mana Core] contains the condensed mana of this monster. It can be used for many different purposes.}
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...well, that's not much to go on. What did I expect from a level 4 [Identify], anyway? It'll probably rank up in the future to something like [Appraisal] and then it'll be a nice little cheat skill, but for now, it's only enough to let me know that this could have some value in the outside world. Now, I wonder if the [Citrosian] also has one of these...
I activated my
I also obtained more information about the [Labyrinth] I was in, understanding that the floor that I was on was the deepest floor that the "people" of the world had explored. They could not proceed further due to the territorial and mana-hungry battle between the [Citrosian Queen] and [Hydra Wolf Overlord], both of which were classified as S+ ranked monsters. While a party of S-ranked soldiers or adventurers could probably defeat these monsters, it was deemed too risky to expend such talent on a floor that did not have that much value in terms of materials. Materials of similar value could be obtained in much less risky floors, and an S+ quality [Mana Core] was certainly valuable, but none of the surrounding countries were willing to take the risk to obtain them when A quality and below were much less risky and more plentiful in higher floors.
To make matters worse, a scouting party of adventurers who had entered the 87th floor of the [Labyrinth] had once reported hearing a howl that came from a monster that was at least an SS rank threat. This ranking was tentatively given upon analysing the aftershock of the howl and the potential distance from the monster. It was agreed upon that this monster which resided in the depths of the 87th floor was probably the Master of the floor, and while it did not interfere in the war between the two S+ ranked monsters, it would definitely pose a problem to adventurers aiming to clear the [Labyrinth] floor.
Furthermore, it was discovered that upon killing enough [Citrosian] and [Hydra Wolf], both the [Citrosian Queen] and [Hydra Wolf Overlord] would declare a [Blood Feud] against those who had killed their underlings, leading to the deaths of many an adventurer who had earned the attention of these monsters and yet chose to press on deeper.
For the countries surrounding the [Labyrinth], the greatest headache and greatest boon was the fact that monsters in the [Labyrinth] would reconstitute themselves over time. It would take longer for higher-ranked monsters, but the mana concentration was so high that it would automatically reconstitute dead monsters in order to sustain the balance of mana in the [Labyrinth]. The lower the floor, the higher the concentration of mana, and thus the higher the rate of powerful monsters appearing. It could be said that each [Citrosian] and [Hydra Wolf] would only shave off about 0.01% of excess mana, while over-S ranked monsters like the [Queen], [Wolf Overlord], and [Floor Master] would each shave off at least 20% of the excess mana.
As I read this, however, a headache started to form. I could probably stay away from these over-S ranked monsters and somehow make my way to the floor above, but... the math didn't add up. Assuming each S+ rank consumed 20% of excess mana, and the SS rank consumed maybe 30%, even adding up over 300 of each lower ranked monster meant that there was still at least an S+ ranked monster roaming around somewhere. I was not keen on meeting this mysterious monster.
Or perhaps...that excess mana was used in my reincarnation?
A thought flashed across my head. Yet, after pondering upon it for a while, I quickly rejected the notion. It was impossible that my reincarnation absorbed that much excess mana. I mean, going by these rankings, where [Hydra Wolf] and [Citrosian] were both considered around C-ranked monsters, my own strength level would at most be around D. Even if I had been reincarnated into this [Labyrinth] at my current strength level, I would consume even less mana than one of these "mobs" who only consumed 0.01% of the excess mana.
In other words... I should really be on the lookout for a potentially neutral faction S+ level monster that could be anywhere. Thankfully, a small amount of this floor had been mapped, and the vast majority of information that I got from the level up of the [World Handbook] was the map of each floor up to mine. I was also informed that these maps were sold to any individual or party intending to dive into the [Labyrinths] or [Dungeons] around the world through a device known as a [Skill Orb] which could imprint a temporary skill into a person.
Generally, [Skill Orbs] weren't used to gain combat skills as they would limit the ability of the person to gain the actual skill permanently, but information skills such as these were the main market of [Skill Orbs]. To add on to the usefulness of such skills, the skill offered was known as [Megaceris Labyrinth Navigation (Floor X)], where X was the floor that needed to be navigated. It would give the location of the skill user as a blip on the map as the user travelled through the dungeon. As such, the deeper the floor, the more money made from such [Skill Orbs]. While my [World Handbook] skill was nowhere near that broken, I could still navigate using a static map if I knew where the exits and entrances where.
Whew, what an information dump. I didn't think levelling it up would give me so much more information, but I guess every time it levels up, it gives me more information based on where I am in this world?
Thinking about it more, I decided that it was likely that as I encountered more of the world, and made my own interpretations and inferences about what was going on, I would stand a chance of triggering the [World Handbook] to level up. After all, it was after I heard the howl of the [Floor Master], inferred that the two races of monsters were at war, and then obtained my first [Mana Core] that the [World Handbook] levelled up. It then seemed to give me information pertinent to my situation, but only information that anyone else in that situation would have access to. In other words, the more unknown the situation I was in to the other people in the world, the less corresponding information I would get. The more familiar and widely known the situation, the more information I would get.
With that hypothesis in mind, I collected the two mana cores, deposited them into the same subspace as the [Citrosian] carapace, and prepared to leave my safe alcove.